


Run

by So_much_angst



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Animal Death, Blood, Character Death, Established Relationship, Gore, I'm Sorry bbs, M/M, Prompt Fill, Read at your own discretion, no happy ending, so much blood, triggering content
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-02
Updated: 2017-01-02
Packaged: 2018-09-14 07:30:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,434
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9168463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/So_much_angst/pseuds/So_much_angst
Summary: To be fair, Keith had expected Shiro to only be gone a few minutes. Keith knew that while he was content curled up in the cabin they were staying at, his love and the two hounds they called children were prone to going stir-crazy. Logic said Shiro had taken the two for a short hike. However, with twilight setting in and darkness beginning its crawl over the ridge-line to the east, there was that subtle twinge of worry starting to blossom in his stomach.PLEASE READ THE TAGS BEFORE OPENING, I CAN'T STRESS THIS ENOUGH





	

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so this was a thing.   
> My first work for the fandom, and what is it? Angst with a side of gore and death. Yay.   
> Originally, the prompt for this was for a class, and now, it's become this monster. Please make sure you've read those tags carefully, so you know what you're getting into, because, wow, it gets dark. 
> 
> A SPECIAL THANKS TO TAYLOR FOR PUTTING UP WITH MY 4 AM CRAP WHILE WRITING THIS AND PROVIDING HER BETA-ING TALENT. I LOVE YOU!
> 
> The original prompt was: As your character is doing something, the lights go out for a brief time. When they come back on, there is a note stuck to the window with just one word. RUN!

     To be fair, Keith had expected Shiro to only be gone a few minutes. Keith knew that while he was content curled up in the cabin they were staying at, his love and the two hounds they called children were prone to going stir-crazy. Logic said Shiro had taken the two for a short hike. However, with twilight setting in and darkness beginning its crawl over the ridge-line to the east, there was that subtle twinge of worry starting to blossom in his stomach. Getting to his feet, Keith let out a frustrated sigh. It had been almost half an hour since they left. With Shiro, Black, and Red ("Keith, you're never allowed to name our pets again.") still out and a glance that the weather app on his phone confirming the temperatures were falling, his worry was beginning to grow. 

     Another ten minute passed.

     Then another.  


     As fifteen more sluggishly ticked away, the cloud-strewn sky faded to a mottled violet and ultramarine.  


     Just as the final blots of pinks and lilac disappeared into the night, Keith's patience and self-control followed suit. He bundled up, a short huff passing his lips when he realized his scarf was tangled with Shiro's. Of course.  


_He's got to be so cold out there.  
_

     Just as Keith tugged on his second boot, a soft whir and a condemning _click_ echoed through the small space, right before everything electric shut off. It only took a second for the backup generator to rumble to life, but to Keith, that second of darkness felt like an eternity. The lights flickering back on allowed dread to curl its wicked claws further into his stomach.  


     Placed on the window of the door, almost so inconspicuous that Keith may have missed it without the backlight from the porch, was a small yellow Post-it note with one word scrawled across it.  


     RUN  


     Nope.  


**_NOPE_**.  


     Keith pulled his boot on the rest of the way, grabbed the essentials - _Phone. Wallet. Keys. Knife._ \- and bolted out of the door. He had to find Shiro. There was no way he was going back to that cabin without him, the dogs, and a couple rifles. Nothing would be able to convince Keith otherwise. Receding deep into his fur lined coat and thick red scarf, Keith skidded down the porch steps and took off in a sprint after the mess of foot and paw prints in the snow.  


***  


     Deep in the woods and with darkness settled like a blanket over the wooded valley, Keith was cold, panicked, and ready to curl up in the falling snow and die. Shiro's tracks had stopped about a mile ago in a small clearing. The white fluff that should have been a peaceful sight was instead trampled and streaked with blood. Clumps of ginger and black fur littered the ground between bloodied strips of cloth, and the thick scent of copper floated in the air. Keith had to fight off a panic attack then and there, instead forcing himself to follow a new trail with the poor lighting of his phone flashlight.  


     Blood dribbled across foliage guided him now.  


     Silence was only broken by the crunch of Keith's boots as he continued on, until a familiar whine drifted through the air. He broke into a sprint once again, the trail of blood forgotten in favor of finding the source of the high pitched noise.  


     When he stumbled into the clearing, Keith could barely breathe as tunnel vision took over.

" _Red._ "  


     Red whipped around, lips curled in a snarl, hackles high, and the wild look of panic in her eyes. Her back left leg twisted in an unnatural angle, blood dripping from the elevated paw. The Rhodesian Ridge-back let loose a snarl that would make most people reconsider approaching her. But not Keith. He and Shiro had raised Red and Black from when they were puppies; Keith knew she was all bark and little bite. He clicked his tongue twice, watching as her trademark ginger ridge started to fall. Lip curling back down, Red considered him for a moment. With another click, she took a few paw steps forward, tilting and wavering with each. Time seemed to hesitate and stall with his heartbeat.  


     _Ba-bump._  


     Red fell to her side with a dull thud.  


     _Ba-bump._

     Keith finally saw why she had been so defensive.  


     _Ba-bump._  


     Behind his beloved canine, a pile of black fur lay crumpled in a crimson pool.  


     _Ba-bump._  


     Keith darted forward, sliding to his knees between the two. He did his best to pull Red over and across his lap, but barely managed. Blood stained his hands as Keith carded his fingers through Black's fur, phone camera side up in the red slush. A jagged wound running across the lab's side lazily oozed viscous red liquid. Despite the warmth radiating from the gash, Black was cold to the touch and his flank was still.  


     Keith had to remind himself that corpses don't actively bleed.  


     Her head draped across Keith's lap, Red whined and struggled to lave her tongue across the bloody pelt of her mate.  


     "Shh, sweetheart," Keith choked, tears spilling over and his throat closing, "H-he's in a better place now."  


     Bitter anger washed over Keith in waves, threatening to drown him whenever he found who did this to his sweet dogs, _to his family._ He pressed a short kiss to Black's head, closing the lab's eyes and mouth as he did. Gently, as not to hurt her worse, Keith picked up Red, huffing under her weight. 

     "Goodbye Black, I love you, so do Red and Shiro."  


***  


     Keith was near breathless as he carried injured Red along. She had freaked out when they left Black in the snow, causing him to drop his phone more than once. The screen was streaked with blood and shattered, a bitter reminder that what happened in this mountain was going to change Keith's life forever. He jostled Red as her breathing began to slow again; even though she had used all of her energy, Keith knew if she fell asleep she would die in his arms. She snapped at him the first time with a screech of pain when he pressed her leg by accident. Her teeth dug into the plush of his jacket, threatening to tear. Keith headbutted her neck to remind her he didn't take that crap.  


     At this point, the only thing fueling Keith was rage and panic. As the blood trail got easier to see in the small beam of light, its heady stench began to fill the air once more. By the time he stumbled into another clearing, Keith was nauseous and choking on the smell. He set Red down carefully and struggled to regain his breath. Thick, metallic, _warm_ air filled his lungs with each pant, prompting Keith to finally take a look around the clearing where they stopped.  


     Keith wished he didn't.  


     Blood splattered the ground, gnawed on bones and pieces of flesh scattered across the forest floor. Small stones sat in certain arrangements all across the clearing. Keith stood, horrified at when he saw. His stomach lurched painfully as he stepped on a piece of god knows what and flattened it with a sickening _squish._ Fear overtook the flame of rage in his stomach, leaving Keith desperately fighting the urge to throw up.  


     When he caught sight of Shiro, _his poor Shiro_ , strung up in a tree like a decoration to this macabre scene, his stomach could take no more. Keith emptied his guts right then and there, the crappy mac and cheese his boyfriend had made burning like hell the entire way up. Drool and bile clung to his lips as he dared look at the sight before him.  


     Shiro hung against a large tree trunk, gutted like a fish and tied up by a mix of intestines and rope. A large slash ran from cheek to cheek on his perfect face, dribbling blood down his nose and neck. And _oh God_.  


_      His arm.  
_

__

     Keith's eyes welled up with tears as he realized that his vision wasn't playing tricks. The blood that practically poured down his lover's side and left his steel blue eyes clouded over in death was from one thing.  


_      Shiro's arm was gone.  
_

__

  
_      " _ Oh my God... Shiro please no."   
  


__

     Red gave a small whimper, but it was too late to warn Keith. Needles of ice seemed to dig into his neck, stopping him where he stood and freezing his blood. A chuckle as cold as the talons pressed to his skin sent Keith's heart and mind into full blown panic.  


     "What's this? Another toy?"  


**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading, any feedback or kudos is greatly appreciated! If you want to scream at me for what I've done, you can find me at little-eclipse-kitten on tumblr. 
> 
> Until next time!


End file.
